Lubricating apparatus



Oct. 29, 1940. E. w. DAVIS LUBRI CAT ING APPARATUS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed Nov. 11, 1955 Nos. 1,908,641

' Patented Oct.29, 1940 UNITED STATES 2,219,681 nunincarnve rum-msErnest W.

art-Warner poration of Virginia Davis, Oak Park, lllQassignor to Stew-Corporation, Chicago,

111., a cor- Application November n, 1935, Serial No. 49,113

My invention relates generally apparatus, and more particularly toancentralized lubricating system in which the frequency of application oflubricant pressure to the 5 pipe line system leading to the bearings isautomatically controlled and may be manually adjusted. I

In the lubricating system of my invention the parts to-be lubricated.are each supplied'with a metering device in the formof a measuringvalve. These measuring valves are connected to a single lubricant supplyline and lubricantis supplied to this line by a continuously operatingpower driven pump which has mechanism for by-passing lubricant from thepump during predetermined time intervals so that the measuring valves beperiodically charged with lubricant under pressure.

, It is thus an object of my invention to provide an improvedcentralized lubricating system havsupply lubricant under pressure tovalves adjacent regular intervals.

A further object of my invention is to provide an improved pumpingmechanism of the aforesaid type in which the duration of the-intervalsbetween the supplying of lubricant under pressure may be readily varied.

:20 A further-object is to'provide a pumping mechanism for a centralizedlubricating system which is in the form of a unit incorporating a pumpequipped with a time control mechanism for determining the intervalsbetween eilective opera- ::5 tion of the pump.

'Other objects will appear description, reference beingpanying drawings,in which:

Fig. l is a central vertical section of the pump unit shown connectedwith a pluralityof measuring valves, the latter being shown inelevation;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectionalview of one of the measuringvalves;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the body of one the measuring valves;and

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view of the pumping more clearly the prinfromthe following had to the accomif of mechanism to illustrate ciples ofits operation.

In the lubricating system of my invention I so employ measuring valveswhich are provided with means for measuring a charge of lubricant andstoring it under pressure. The measuring valve shown in the presentapplication is of the general type illustrated in Ericson and Whi e?!Patents and 1,915,302,

to lubricatin improved The pumping mechanism comprises a die cast bodyIn to which a bowl-shaped lubricant reservoirl2 is suitably secured, agasket l4 being interposed between the body Wand a flange 16 on thereservoir to prevent leakage of lubricant. A suitablecap I6 is fittedover the top of the body admission of dust and dirt. The body l6 dependsinto the reservoir l2 and near its lower end is provided with acylindrical bore [6, the lower end of which forms a high pres- 10 surecylinder and the upper end of which forms a guide for a plunger 26. Theplunger has a head 22 at its upper end for engagement with a cam 24which is secured to a shaft 26. The shaft 26 may be rotated by anysuitable'means such as 15 the. pulley 26 driven by a belt 30. Theplunger 20 is held in engagement with the cam 24 and moved on itsretractile stroke by a compression coil spring 32 which surrounds theplunger 26. and abuts against lower end of the head 22.

The high pressure cylinder I8 is provided with an. outlet check valve 34engaging a check valve seat 36 and to which access may be hadforcleaningby removal of a plug 36. The check 25 valve 34 is preventedfrom moving a substantial distance from its seat 36 by a pin 40.Lubricant may flow from the reservoir l2 into the high pressure cylinderl8 through an inlet port 42.

The lubricant discharged under pressure by the so pump 20 flows througha passageway 44, through a tube 46, into a branch passageway 48 formedin the upper end of the body Ill, and thence through a conduit 56 to thefirst measuring valve 60 which is attached to abearing part 62 which 35,

is to-be supplied with lubricant. Additional conduits 64, 66 areprovided to connect additional measuring valves 66 to the pumping in Themeasuring valves of any desired number may be connected in any suitablebranch or series arrangement by suitable conduit connections, althoughin most installations it will be found desirable to connect a number ofmeasuring valves in series'as illustrated in Fig. 1.

Flow through the passageway 46 andhence to u the measuring valves iscontrolled by a sliding valve 68 which; is vertically reciprocable in ahead 10 suitably secured to the body ill. The valve member. 66 is shownin closed position in Fig. 1, beingprovided with an annular groove 12which, 5 when the valve is shifted upwardly from the position shown inFig. 1', will connect a passageway 14 with an open end extension 16thereof. The passageway 14 is in direct communication with the tube 46and passageway 46. The valve 68 5 the shoulder formed at the y is heldin its uppermost and lowermost positions respectively, and is urged tothe ends of its stroke by a pair of rollers I8, carried by pivoted arms80, and which are resiliently held in engagement with one or the otherof two annular grooves 82, 84, of

the valve 68, by a tension coil spring 86 the ends of which are anchoredto the arms 80.

The valve 68 has an axial bore extending longitudinally therethrough toreceive a valve actuating rod 88, the lower end of which is secured to apiston 90. The piston 90 is slidably mounted in a cylinder 92 and isnormally urged downwardly by a, compression coil spring 84, the upperend of which abuts against the inner surface of the head 10. Arelatively light compression coil spring 96 surrounds the lower end ofthe rod 88 and has a loose washer 98 resting thereon. A light coilspring I00, similar to the spring 88, surrounds the upper end of the rod88 being adapted to be compressed between the valve 88 and an adjustablestop on the rod, illustrated as a nut I02 and lock nut I04.

A passageway I06 connects the passageway 44 with the lower end ofcylinder 92, downward flow through this passageway being prevented by aspring pressed check valve I 08 engaging a check valve seat IIO. Flowfrom the lower end 01' the cylinder 82 to the interior of the reservoirI2 may take place through a needle valve port I I2,,the orifice of whichis controlled by an adjustable needle valve II4 having a stem II6 whichprojects exteriorly of the body casting I0 and has a suitable handle II8 secured thereto.

The preferred form of measuring valve utilizable in the system of myinvention and which is shown in Figs. 2 and 3, comprises a body I28which has a pair of bosses I22 formed integrally therewith, the bossesbeing tapped to receive bushings I24 of connectors for the ends ofconduits such as 50 and. Both conduits communicate directly with apassageway I26 extending through the body I20. -An outlet valve seatmember I 26 has its lower end I28 suitably tapped so that the measuringvalve may be screwed into the oil hole of a bearing and has its upperend I30 threaded and screwed into a tapped bore I32 formed in the lowerend of the body I 20. The valve seat member has an upwardly extendingcentral projection I34, the upper end face I36 of which forms a seat fora flexible valve I38. The projection I34 has a suitable passagewayextending therethrough for conducting lubricant to the bearing.

The valve I 38 is normally held in contact with a substantiallyspherically concave valve seat I40 formed in the body I20 by acompression coil spring I42, a suitably formed spring seat I44 beinginterposed between the end of the spring and the valve I38 evenly todistribute the force of the spring about the periphery of the valve I38.A port I46 intersects the seat surface I40 of the valve and communicateswith the passageway I26 formed in the body.

A pressure reservoir I48 is threaded in a'boss I50 formed at the top ofthe body I20 and is bored to provide a cylinder I52 in which acup-shaped piston I54 is reciprocable. The piston may be made of leatherbut is preferably made of a suit-' able oil resistant rubber or rubbersubstitute composition. The piston I54 is apertured to providefor a stopI 56 which may be -formed integrally with a piston backing plate I58,the stop I56 limiting downward movement of the backing plate I58 underthe influence of a compression coil spring I60. The lower end of the coip g -bymeans I 88 is guided by a sleeve I82 which rests on the pistonbacking plate I88, or may be i'ormed integrally therewith, the sleeveI82 being adapted to limit upward movement or the piston byengaging ashoulder I84 formed at the upper end of the cylinder I82. An air ventI88 is preferably provided in the upper end 01 the pressure reservoirI48. The lower end or the cylinder I82, beneath the piston I84, is incommunication with the space I88 in which the spring I42 is located, ofa pair 01' drilled passageways I10 (El!- 3).

The measuring valve operates in the following manner: Upon the supply oflubricant under pressure to the passageway I28 the central portion ofthe flexible valve I88 will first be pressed downwardly to form a sealend face I88 of the projection I84 and thereafter upon further increasein the pressure of the lubricant supplied, the peripheral portion of thevalve I88 will be pressed away from the seat, against the force of thespring I42, and permit lubricant to flow into the space I68 and thencethrough the passageways I10 to the lower end of the cylinder I82 oi thepressure reservoir. The lubricant will flow into this reservoir, raisingthe piston I84 against the force of the compression coil spring I80until the upward movement of the piston is limited by the engagement ofthe sleeve I62 with the shoulder I64.

When the pressures on both sides of the valve I88 are then equalized,the outer edge portion of the valve I38 will again be pressed againstits seat I48 by the spring I42. Upon a reduction in the pressure of thelubricant supplied to the measuring valve, the valve I38 .will againflex to the position in which it is shown in Fig. 2 and thus permitlubricant to flow from the pressure reservoir through the passagewaysI10 into the space I88 and thence through the longitudinal bore in thevalve seat member I28 to the part'to be lubricated. The speed atwhichthe pressure reservoir is discharged will depend in a large measure uponthe degree of resistance to flow of lubricant which is ofiered by thepart to be lubricated.

From the above description of the operation of the measuring valve itwill be apparent that to insure that it function properly, it isnecessary that lubricant be supplied intermittently under high pressureand that the pressure be relieved substantially during the intervalsbetween the application of pressure. The pump mechanism above describedis admirably adapted for this purpose. As previously stated, the pumpplunger 28 is operated continuously to supply oil under pressure to thepassageway 44. Assuming the valve 88 to be in the position in which itis shown in Fig. 1, the lubricant will flow from the passageway 44through the conduit 46, passageway 48 and conduit 80 to the variousmeasuring valves until all of the measuring valves have had theirpressure reservoirs completely filled with lubricant.

When the measuring valves are thus completely charged, the pressure inthe conduit will build up sufliciently to overcome the force of thespring I88 behind the check valve I 08 and the lubricant supplied by thepump will thereafter flow past the check valve I 08 into the lower endof the cylinder 82. Since the valve I08 should remain closed until allof the measuring valves have been'completely charged, it will beapparent that the spring I86 must be made stronger (in pounds of fluidpressure which it will resist) than the springs I 88 in the pressurereservoirs of the against the seating 98 therein will be compressedsufliciently to overcome the resist-- rapidly from in Fig-."l t 8measuring valves. .As the lubricant is pumped into the lower end of thecylinder 92, the piston raised until the spring 98 is ance to. movementof the valve 88 which is oilered by. the spring pressed rollers 18.sistance has been overcome the valve 88 will snap the position in whichit is shownposition in which the annular passageway. 12. is incommunication with the passageways I4, Ii. Thereafter lubricant discharged by the pump I way 16, the latter being preferably directed so asto supply the cam 24 and the head 22 or the plunger 28 with a copiousamount oi oil.

' Throughout theperiod while the lubricant was being rorcedpast thecheck valve into the lower animal when this rep will flow fromthe-passageend of the cylinder 92,some of this lubricant rate materiallyto interfere its cylinder 92 and cylinder 92 flo'wed from the cylinderthrough .the port 2 of the needle valve I II. valve cannot, however, beat a suillcientlyrapid with the raising of the piston I90. However, whenthe valve 68 has been raised to its uppermost position and lubricanttherefore no-longer flows into the lower end The flow past the needle;

01 the cylinder past the check valve IIl8, -the escape of lubricantbetween the. needle valve I I4 and its seat will permit the piston 98 todescend gradually until the spring I88 presses against the valve 88 withsuilicient force to overcome the resistance oiiered by the springpressed rollers 18 and to-snap the valve downvwardly to the position inwhich it is shown in Fig. 1. 'When the valve has been moved to itslowermost position the pressure in the discharge conduit 58 will againbe built up and the cycle of'operation previously be repeated Y It willbe cessive chargi operations rate at which the piston 90 movesdownwardly in that the rate oi! this movement of the piston may Iadjusting the size of the oriilce of the needle valve Ill. For any IIIthe rate will be determined by the viscosity of the lubricant. Since inmost instances the measuring valves will the lubricant will escape fromthe bearings atv a slower rate, when the lubricant is of high vismaticin this respect cosity, this regulation 0! the duration 0! intervalsbetween lubricant supplying operations is of some advantage. to observethat the viscosity determinant above discussed, as related to flow underany givenset- .tin g of the valve In, may be'oi particular sis-'- numberof instances, such as wherev viscositiesare used alterlubrlcant ofdiilerent at diilerent times, or,

nately in the system, or

where the lubricant. is subjected to tempera- .ture changes, in whichcase a slower flow would 'be present where the temperature was low.since higher viscosities or lower temperatures also bring about 'aslower escape of lubricant from the bearings lubricated, it is a veryadvantageous feature of the present invention thatlthe responsive tosuch viscosity flow determinants so I be paced with the speed oftheescape of lubricant from the bearing. Greater economiesin lubricantresults, and the system in that it eliminates much valve adjustmentotherwise necessary for the correct operation of such lubricatingsystems.

described 'will given setting of the-valve of discharge of lubricantfrom the.

In this connection, it might be wellthat the lubricant feed will tershave been Yet it should not be overlooked that ii the result bro t aboutby the change in viscosity is not desired, it will be appreciated thatthe flow can be-altered by an adiustmentoi the valve I II to suit theneed of any particular occasion. Consequently, althoughthe needlevalve-permits a wide range of adjustment, with, any given adiustment thelength of the intervals between charging operations will be veryaccurate in measuring "automatically the correct amount oi lubricant toreplace the lubricant escaping from the bearings, in fact more In Fig. 4I have diagrammatically illustrated a slightly modified tom of myinvention which operates upon essentially the same principle as theconstruction shown in Fig. l, but which diflers in the. construction oiseveral of the elements. To avoid duplication similar referencecharacapplled to parts which are sumciently similar to the correspondingparts of the previously described construction to obviate the necessityfor further description. 'In this construction the piston I80 has a stemI82 connected thereto by a lost motion accurate than required.

connection, the stem I82 being connected to the valve I84 by a tensionand 2 compression coil spring I86. The lubrlcant discharged from thepump cylinder I88 flows through a conduit I9Ilto a cross-T I92. Aconduit ill leadsirom the cross-T I92 to the conis controlled by thevalve I84.

unit 58 supplying the measuring valve 80. A second conduit I96 leadsfrom the cross-T I92 to thevalve body I98, the flow through which Athird conduit 298 leads from the cross-T I92 to a check valve noted thatthe-interval between sucwill depend upon the readily be controlled byoperate more slowly, and

is practically autoternally threaded body 2I6 and tively maticallyshown,

chamber 202 a spring pressed check sion coil spring 288, the force oivwhich may be varied-by adjustment of a plug 2H] forming the seat for thelower end of the check valve.

Lubricant which flows past the check valve 284 may flow through aconduit 2 I2 to the lower end or a. cylinder 92 or may flow through aconduit 2 to allow metering device comprising an inan adjustable plugmember 2I8. The plug member preferably has a thread mutilated by havingits apex ground therefrom so that a helical passageway ofrelasmallcross-sectional area is formed beand flow through this latter conduit 85is normally prevented by valve 294' held against a seat 206 by acomprestweenthe plug 2 I8 and the body 216. This rem tively'long helicalpassageway will oiler considerable resistance to the flow of lubricant.The eilective length of the passageway (and hence the degree ofresistance offered thereby) may readily be varied by screwing the plug agreater or lesser distance into the body. l

, As previously stated, the construction diagramtrated in Fig. 1. Adescription of this operation is' therefore believed to be unnecessary.It is merely, necessary to state that the flow resistance controllingthe escape 'of lubricant from the lower end of the cylinder 92, thandoes the needle valve Ill. It, for example, it is desired that themeasuring valve be charged at exceedingly long intervals. a resistancedevice of the screwthreaded type shown in Fig. 4 might be prein Fig. 4operates .in substantially the same manner as the constructionillusdevice 2, 2I8 forms a more sensitive device for v ierred to aneedle valve type of restricted orifice asshowninFig. 1, since if theneedle valve is adjusted to form too small an orifice it is subject tobecoming clogged by minute impurities contained in the oil.

While I have illustrated and described preferred embodiments of myinvention, many modiiications may be made without departing from thespirit of the invention, and I do not wish to be limited to the precisedetails set forth but desire to avail myself of all changes within thescope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. In a centralized lubricating system, the combination of a pluralityof bearings to be lubricated, metering means associated with each ofsaid bearings, a conduit system connecting said metering means, a sourceof lubrfcant supply, a continuously operating pump for feeding lubricantfrom said source to said conduit system, a valve for relieving thepressure in said conduit system to atmospheric pressure, lubricantreceiving pressure operated means for opening said valve, means forgradually relieving the said pressure operated means of lubricantreceived thereby, means for supplying lubricant to said last named meansonly when the pressure in the conduit system attains a predeterminedmaximum, resilient means associated with said lubricant receiving valveopening means to cause the latter to close said valve upon the relief oflubricant from said means, and manually operable means to control therate of relief of lubricant from said lubricant receiving means.

2. In a centralized lubricating system, the combination of a pluralityof bearings to be inbricated, pressure operated metering meansassociated with each of said bearings, a conduit system connecting saidmetering means, a source of lubricant supply, a continuously operatingpump for feeding lubricant from said source to said conduit system, avalve for relieving the pressure in said conduit system to atmosphericpressure, a lubricant receiving pressure operated means for opening saidvalve whenever the pressure in the conduit system exceeds the pressurenecessary for the operation of said metering means, means for graduallyrelieving said lubricant receiving means of lubricant received thereby,resilient means associated with said lubricant receiving valve openingmeans to cause the latter to close said valve upon the relief 01'lubricant from said means, and manually operable means to control therate of relief of lubricant from said lubricant receiving means therebyto regulate the intervals between the application of pressure to saidconduit system.

3. In combination, a plurality of bearings to be lubricated, meteringmeans associated with each of said bearings, a conduit system connectingsaid metering means, means to supply lubricant under pressure to saidconduit system, means including a valve opened to relieve the lubricantpressure in said conduit system whenever it attains a predetermined andunvarying maximum pressure, and hydraulic means for closing said valveafter it has been opened for a predetermined interval including arestricted open passageway offering resistance to the flow of lubricanttherethrough in proportion to the viscosity of lubricant passingtherethrough whereby the duration of the interval is determined by theviscosity of the lubricant.

4. In combination, a plurality of bearings to be lubricated, a lubricantpressure operated measuring valve associated with each of said bearings,a conduit system connecting said measm-ing valves, means to supplylubricant under pressure to said conduit system, means including arelief valve which is opened to relieve the lubricant pressure in saidconduit system upon attainment of predetermined and unvarying maximumpressure therein, and means for closing said relief valve after it hasbeen opened for a predetermined interval including a flow meteringdevice dependent in part upon the temperature of fluid metered for therate of flow whereby the duration of the interval is responsive to theviscosity of the lubricant.

5. In a centralized lubricating system, the combination of a pluralityof lubricant measuring valves, one associated with each of the bearingsto be lubricated, a conduit system connecting said measuring valves, acontinuously operating lubricant pumping mechanism for supplyinglubricant under pressure to said conduit system, means responsive to thecreation or a predetermined maximum lubricant pressure regardless oflubricant viscosity for repeatedly interrupting the supply or saidlubricant under pressure to provide periodic application of lubricantunder pressure to said conduit system, means responsive to the viscosityof the lubricant to control the duration or the intervals betweenperiods of application of lubricant under pressure to said conduitsystem, and manually operable means to adjust said means to vary theduration of said intervals.

6. A lubricant supply installation for centralized lubricating systemscomprising, a pump, a discharge passageway therefor, a valve for ventingsaid discharge passageway, a cylinder having one end connected to saidpassageway by a duct, a spring pressed check valve in said duct allowingflow of lubricant to said end of the cylinder above a certain pressure,a piston in said cylinder, means urging said piston toward said end 01'the cylinder, a resilient lost motion connection between said piston andsaid venting valve for opening and closing said valve in relation to themovement of said piston, and a restricted vent for permitting escape oflubricant from the end of said cylinder which is connected to saidpassageway.

7. In a centralized lubricating system, the combination oi. a pluralityof lubricant metering devices, a conduit system connecting said meteringdevices, a lubricant pumping mechanism for supplying lubricant underpressure to said conduit system, means for repeatedly interrupting thesupply of said lubricant under pressure upon the creation of a maximuminvariant lubricant pressure, and means responsive to the viscosity ofthe lubricant to control both the duration of said interruption and theintervals between said interruptions.

8. A lubricant supply installation for centralized lubricating systems,comprising, a pump, a discharge passageway therefor, a valve for ventingsaid discharge passageway, a cylinder having one end connected to saidpassageway by a duct, a spring pressed check valve in said ductadmitting lubricant under pressure to said cylinder, a weighted pistonin said cylinder moved by lubricant admitted thereto, means controllingthe position of said venting valve including a resilient connectionthrough which said valve may be moved in either direction by saidpiston, and a restricted passageway for permitting escape of lubricantfrom the end of said cylinder with which said duct communicates.

9. In a centralized lubricating system for a plurality of bearings, thecombination of a conduit system leading to the bearings, a source oflubricant under pressure feeding said system under difierent temperatureconditions, means for periodically preventing application of saidlubricant pressure to said system during. operation of the mechanism,said last-named means being re sponsive to the creation of apredetermined maximum lubricant pressure regardless of variations inlubricant temperature, means responsive to lubricant flowcharacteristics which are dependent upon the temperature of saidlubricant for varying the duration of the periods between successiveapplications of lubricant pressure, and manually operable means forchanging the ad- 5 justment of said temperature responsive means. 7

ERNEST W. DAVIS.

